'Opportunity a lot of kids didn't get to have.' Indy baseball team competes in RBI World Series

Indianapolis Star

18 hours ago

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Indianapolis-based Indy RBI played in the RBI World Series last week, losing in the championship game.
Notre Dame recruit Desmond Francis said it was "truly a blessing" after leading the team with a .447 batting average.
Participating in the 2025 RBI Baseball World Series meant more to Park Tudor senior Desmond Francis than just playing baseball.
Francis, Mayo Fernandez (Fishers), Maalik Perkins (Whiteland), Theo Kramer (Lawrence North) and several other Indy-area baseball players led Indy RBI to the championship game against Arizona Diamondbacks RBI at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Florida on Friday.
"Being able to play at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex was a blessing," Francis said. "I'd never been there. I saw it on social media, but I never really had a grasp of what it looked like. Going to the stadium, to the backfields, the complexes and facilities, it was truly a blessing.
"Playing in the championship game, at night, with high energy, the crowd, TV (cameras), mics and everything. ... It's an opportunity a lot of kids didn't get to have. I'm happy that it's something my teammates and coaches got to share together."
Indy RBI went 5-0 during regional play in Kansas City, Missouri, earning a trip to the World Series. Indy advanced to the championship game with wins over Detroit Tigers RBI and NOLA RBI before falling to D-Backs RBI 5-4 in the championship on MLB Network.
Nick Johnson (Lawrence Central) led Indy going 1-for-3 with a triple and three RBIs. Over 11 games, Francis, a Notre Dame recruit, led Indy with a .447 batting average, one double, two triples, 11 RBIs, 10 runs scored and nine stolen bases. Jayden Adorno (Columbus North) was the team's top pitcher, striking out six over 13⅓ innings with a 3.67 ERA.
"It was extremely fun. Some of the most fun I've had. We meshed really, really well on the field, and we meshed really, really well off the field," Francis said. "We treated each other like brothers off the field and played like we'd been together for 10 years.
"It was a really good experience. Everybody was hyped, excited and wanted to play the game of baseball."
RBI is a program run by Major League Baseball created to give youth from underserved and diverse communities the chance to play baseball. It uses the sport to teach life lessons while stressing academic success and core values like teamwork. More than 200 RBI alum have been selected in the MLB draft during the program's 36-year history, including active players Taj Bradley (Minnesota Twins), Lawrence Butler (Athletics'), J.P. Crawford (Seattle Mariners), Hunter Greene (Cincinnati Reds) and Michael Harris II (Atlanta Braves).
RBI hopes to revive interest in baseball within diverse communities, reversing a troubling trend in participation among Black players. The MLB reached an all-time high in 1981 when 18.7% of the league consisted of Black players, according to SABR.org. By 2016, the percentage of Black players in the MLB had fallen to 6.7%. This season, 59 Black players appeared on Opening Day active and inactive lists, per MLB.com.
"Throughout travel ball you don't get much experience with players that look like you," Francis said. "It's especially hard in Indiana, you don't see it a lot. Being able to play with guys that look like me, we've shared the same experiences, Black and Brown kids with different backgrounds, they go to different schools. That was really fun.
"It was a really competitive tournament and there were a lot of great, talented players there."